What You Actually Pay: Greek Property Tax, Year One and After
Purchase costs are the part everyone plans for. The annual ones are the part that surprises people.
Dimitris Katsaros
At purchase
Most transactions carry a 3.09% transfer tax. New builds can fall under 24% VAT instead, but that VAT has been suspended for qualifying new homes, so in practice most presale buyers pay the transfer tax. On top: notary, land-registry and legal fees.
Every year after
ENFIA is the annual property tax. It's calculated from the property's objective (assessed) value, not what you paid, which is why two flats with the same price tag can carry different bills. For a typical apartment it lands in the low hundreds of euros a year.
If you rent it out
Rental income from Greek property is taxed in Greece, on a progressive scale starting at 15%. You file a Greek return even if you live elsewhere. Whether you also pay at home depends on the double-taxation treaty with your country, for most of our buyers there is one, and it prevents paying twice, not paying at all.
The three things people forget
- A Greek tax number (AFM) is needed before you can buy.
- ENFIA follows the calendar year, buy in December and a bill arrives sooner than expected.
- Selling within a few years can bring capital-gains exposure; the treatment has changed more than once, so check the position at the time you sell, not the time you buy.
General guidance, not legal or tax advice. Rules change and every purchase differs, get a licensed Greek professional to confirm your own position.
